Report on Truck Cartel February 2023

Published February 23, 2023

Truck Cartel, AT.39824

All parties have presented their arguments in court. The first results of the court-commissioned expert opinion have been presented and all quantum experts will review and send their statements by the end of May.

Favourable Court Decisions

There have been already 3 favourable decisions made. This is also unreservedly positive for the plaintiff and confirms there are damages for both leasing and purchases from dealers. More importantly, in a recent ruling, the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main did not even allow an appeal to the Federal Supreme Court. This is a clear expression that the essential liability issues in the Truck Cartel have now been clarified and the regional courts can work through the cases based on fixed guidelines.

Most of the lawsuits in Germany are pending at the Munich Regional Court; currently around 120 lawsuits with a total above 260,000 truck claims.

Claim status

We have filed several lawsuits both for entrepreneurs and for municipalities. All of them are pending at the 37th Civil Chamber of the Munich Regional Court, as we have taken appropriate measures to ensure that the cases being heard by this chamber which is known to be open to arguments in favour of the plaintiffs.

Expectation

Given the favourable decision by the Federal Court and based on the encouraging progress in Munich, we are optimistic to get compensation in your case.

Timeframe

Cartelists must make their submissions by end of May 2023 and we expect hearings around this summer of 2023.

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Recent developments

Truck Cartel, AT.39824 Update September 15, 2023
All parties presented their arguments in court, and currently experts are reviewing them. Three positive decisions favour the plaintiff, confirming damages in leasing and purchases. In October, the Federal Court of Justice will hear more … Read more
UK Supreme Court’s ruling impact on litigation funding and justiceAugust 14, 2023
The UK Supreme Court has delivered a major blow to the litigation funding industry by ruling that agreements that entitle funders to a share of the damages awarded are unenforceable unless they comply with certain … Read more
Up-to-Date Overview: The Latest Developments in German Toll Refunds (Toll-Collect) as of July 2023July 25, 2023
Currently, all administrative proceedings are in the “Ruhendstellung” phase, which means they are awaiting the decision of the Cologne Administrative Court in the pivotal “model” case concerning the application of the Wegekostengutachten 2013 and 2018. … Read more
6 logical reasons why truck manufacturers
will not sanction companies seeking
compensation in the truck cartel caseJune 13, 2023
Ever since the truck cartel scandal broke and the compensation proceedings were launched, there have been constant rumours that it is not worth claiming compensation because there could be “consequences”. We often hear that “we … Read more
Cartelists have already set aside provisions of more than €2.5 billionMay 8, 2023
Eindhoven-based DAF Trucks reached a settlement worth €550 million in Q1 of this year with transport companies who overpaid for their trucks as a result of illegal price fixing. Paccar, which has owned DAF Trucks … Read more
Waberer’s out of court settlement in cartel caseApril 7, 2023
Transport and logistics company Waberer´s has resolved on 03.04.2023 one of the ongoing truck cartel cases through an out-of-court settlement with one of the HGV manufacturers involved. The company had initiated a compensation procedure at … Read more
UK Court urges for simplified approach when calculating damagesMarch 22, 2023
The Uk Court cautions that although they received thousands of pages of detailed expert reports on all the issues, there were certain subsidiary issues, such as Complements and Loss of Volume, where there was disproportionate … Read more
Progress of our pending case in the NetherlandsMarch 20, 2023
The latest developments regarding DAF’s counter-submission to lawsuits in the 3rd batch, which includes our cases. Our lawyers have analysed DAF’s submission and suggested further steps. DAF is denying 100% of the claims submitted by … Read more
Main issues related to expert testimony (Truck Cartel)March 15, 2023
As we previously informed you, The Royal Mail Group and the BT have brought a follow-on claim against companies in the DAF Group for engaging in illegal price fixing. The Competition Appeal Tribunal is currently grappling … Read more
Royal Mail and BT awarded over £17.5 million in damages against DAF TrucksFebruary 24, 2023
The UK Competition Appeal Tribunal recently awarded Royal Mail and BT approximately £17.5 million in damages from DAF Trucks for the Trucks cartel scandal, which is the UK’s first successful follow-on damages claim in the long-running … Read more
Report on Truck Cartel February 2023February 23, 2023
Truck Cartel, AT.39824 All parties have presented their arguments in court. The first results of the court-commissioned expert opinion have been presented and all quantum experts will review and send their statements by the end … Read more
In 2023 it is still not too late to act!February 21, 2023
As you may remember the end of last year was the final deadline, and most of the claims became time-barred with the end of 2022. Yet, you can still make a claim for compensation!In order … Read more
The current state of claims in the NetherlandsFebruary 17, 2023
As we have recently informed you, DAF has been granted one year by the court to prepare its response to the third group action (including the LitFin lawsuit). On 7 December 2022, our attorneys received … Read more
Current state of Toll-collect refunds in GermanyFebruary 15, 2023
The Cologne Administrative Court has made an order* with the subject matter of the dispute: The plaintiff is seeking a partial repayment of tolls for the years 2016-2020, citing a decision of the ECJ on … Read more
State-owned companies, municipalities and public corporations – are they really obliged to claim damages from truck manufacturers?August 8, 2022
The question is often asked: are state-owned companies, municipalities and their municipal enterprises as well as joint-stock companies, in contrast to private companies, legally obliged to initiate compensation proceedings against cartel truck manufacturers before the end of … Read more
Judgment of the Amsterdam Court of 20.7.2022August 7, 2022
In the Netherlands, our clients’ claims are in the third wave of plaintiffs. This allows us to follow the development of the case for the two groups of plaintiffs that will be tried before us … Read more
European Court of Justice ruled: Special vehicles such as waste collection trucks are also subject to the truck cartelAugust 4, 2022
On 01 August 2022, the ECJ clarified that refuse collection trucks and other special vehicles are to be included in the compensation under the truck cartel in the same way as other trucks. The Court thus followed the … Read more
Mercedes has set aside reserves of more than €1 billion in preparation for litigation and legal risksJuly 22, 2022
Although truck manufacturers are extremely low-key (for understandable reasons) about the ongoing claims for damages by the truck cartel, in the background they have already had to reckon with the probably inevitable consequences. At least, this is … Read more
Only 4 months left to act for those who want to get compensationJuly 20, 2022
The explosion in costs and fuel prices that is taking place in Europe before our eyes is putting an extraordinary strain on truck operators, adding to the inevitable wage increases of recent years. It is safe to say that businesses … Read more
Defeat for Mercedes. Motions to bias against the presiding judge rejected.July 17, 2022
Update: The motion for bias filed by Mercedes at the Dortmund Regional Court, Case No. 8 O 4/18 were dismissed. The Dortmund Regional Court was originally scheduled to pronounce a judgment against truck manufacturer Mercedes in an ongoing truck antitrust case in January 2022, but Mercedes wanted … Read more
DAF has filed a motion to join the other truck manufacturers in the proceedings in the NetherlandsJuly 6, 2022
Counterparty’s procedural steps During the proceedings, DAF filed a motion to join the other truck manufacturers in the proceedings in respect of our claim. DAF has already made such a request, but this request has … Read more
ECJ puts the plaintiffs in the Truck Cartel in an even more favourable positionJuly 4, 2022
The ECJ (Court of Justice of the European Union) has now confirmed that the limitation period only starts to run in 2017 (the year of publication of the Commission’s decision) and not already in 2016 (the year of the … Read more
Truck Cartel legal action – A comparison of cases in the UK and GermanyMay 1, 2022
After several years of uneventful waiting, recent developments in the RHA case have brought truck cartel compensation back to the spotlight in the UK. For those who may have missed the latest news, a ruling by the Competition … Read more
Scania has filed an appealApril 19, 2022
As we reported earlier, the European Commission imposed a fine of € 880 million on Scania in Truck Cartel case in 2017 after Scania, unlike the 5 other truck makers, did not cooperate in the investigation of the fraud. Scania’s claim against the … Read more
The chronological history of the Truck CartelMarch 17, 2022
The (price-fixing) Truck Cartel lasted formally for 14 years from 17.01.1997 until 18.01.2011 and was only revealed to the public years later in 2014. The generally accepted view in the field is that damage can be detected up to the … Read more
Latest decision: waste collection trucks and other special purpose trucks are also entitled for compensationMarch 16, 2022
On 24th of February, the Advocate General made it clear in her decision that refuse trucks and other special purpose trucks should be considered just the same as general purpose trucks in the truck cartel compensation process. The early March published Opinion (Case C-588/20, … Read more
Required documents for the Financing Agreement and the Sale of ClaimsFebruary 21, 2022
Invoices or leasing contracts (scan copy). Both purchase, hire purchase, leasing and long-term rental are eligible. It is important that the chassis number of the vehicle is listed on the documents. In the case of a leasing or hire agreement, the total amount, including the down … Read more
It’s still not late to get compensation at German CourtsFebruary 4, 2022
In many EU member states, it is no longer possible to claim compensation for truck cartel damages at court. Reason for that is, that although the EU requires legal harmonisation at a basic level (this means that the … Read more
Good news for non-EU truck owners in truck cartel compensation caseFebruary 4, 2022
From the outset, the whole procedure has only allowed companies based in the EU to claim compensation. From a legal point of view, this is an understandable limitation, as the European Commission’s resolution did not provide a stable … Read more
The European Court has dismissed Scania’s lawsuit and upheld the € 880 million fine February 4, 2022
As previously reported, Scania has tried to go its own way in the truck cartel process, unlike other truck manufacturers. In its 42-page ruling published on 2nd February 2022, the European Court clearly rejected this option. According to the European … Read more
Status report truck cartel lawsuits in the Netherlands January 2022February 2, 2022
On 20th September 2021, our Dutch advocates (from law firm STEK)attended the formal hearing of the Amsterdam District Court. The court discussed a number of procedural issues that were important for the proceedings but also time-consuming. At this … Read more
Status report truck cartel lawsuits in Germany, January 2022January 28, 2022
On 23 September 2021, the Federal Court of Justice (BGH), Case No. KZR 35/19, ruled on fundamental liability and fully confirmed the legal opinion of the plaintiffs. There was not only an exchange of information, but – as … Read more
Is Mercedes grasping at straws? Motion of bias against the presiding judge.December 6, 2021
Update 2: Defeat for Mercedes. Motions to bias against the presiding judge rejected. Update 1: According to information from the Dortmund District Court, no decision has yet been made on the bias applications as of … Read more
Was the truck purchased new directly or via a wholesale company – in both cases there is a claim to the refundDecember 3, 2021
In the second ruling on the Truck Cartel, BGH KZR 19/20, the Federal Court of Justice clarifies that the factual assumption also applies in the case of an indirect, third-party purchases. Because the legally independent wholesalers were involved in the distribution in a systematic and continuous … Read more
Yet another Higher Regional Court decision in favour of the Truck BuyersNovember 22, 2021
With the decision of the 1st Cartel Senate of the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt, 5 August 2021 *, another Higher Regional Court has now joined the plaintiff-friendly judicature in the Truck Cartel case. The decision deals with the … Read more
Reimbursement of the HGV toll – apply for the full amount!November 22, 2021
Following a change of the legal basis, there will be a partial refund of the German HGV toll. But be careful: this refund only covers a fraction of the actual claim! The offered process will reimburse the reduction for … Read more
Next milestone and time expectationsNovember 20, 2021
Now that three Federal Supreme Court (BGH) judgments have been delivered*, all of which are favourable to plaintiffs, the lower courts are called upon to determine the extent of damages. The Federal Supreme Court (BGH) strongly backed the proceedings … Read more
Time-barring – a complex subject explained simplyOctober 27, 2021
With regard to the statute of limitations in the truck cartel case, it should first be noted that the limitation periods have been suspended for a very long time due to the ongoing investigations. The process finally resulted … Read more
And what about Scania now?October 1, 2021
The Scania case is special. While the other 5 cartel offenders fully confessed and admitted all offences, Scania is still resisting. A fine of 880 million euros was imposed on Scania. Scania had to pay this fine because the decision had … Read more
The truck cartel caseSeptember 17, 2021
The European Commission has imposed almost three billion euros in fines on 5 truck manufacturers in the largest cartel uncovered so far, the truck cartel, AT.39284. It is important to note that Daimler, MAN, Renault/Volvo, Iveco and DAF are jointly and severally liable, i.e. each cartel participant can … Read more

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Recent developments

Do you have a question?
Ask our experts!